What's your opinion of Sam's Town?

I've never stayed there and haven't heard much about it. It's awfully cheap for what appears to be a decent suite on the website.

 

I haven't stayed there, only visited. I was driving, but my friends got oh-so-happy drunk from the very nice bartenders, who were promoting their drink specials. We had a great afternoon.

 

First off, it's not downtown, so post may be misplaced. It's way east down Flamingo. Haven't stayed there either, but spent a few hours there last year. Average age was about 140 - honestly, it made the regular downtown crowd seem like youngsters.

Also saw a slot tournament begin and realized what the answer is to the old Asian riddle "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" Those oldsters could bang that button at an unbelievable pace.

The casino and common areas were fine, but I wouldn't stay there due to it's isolation from everywhere else and the demographic.

 

I've never actually stayed there, but I did borrow a friend's room to crash for a few hours on a recent trip.

The rooms are surprisingly nice!

The casino is large, fun, with plenty of low-limit stuff.

The buffet is actually quite good, especially for the price.

The lines are manageable and the drink service, while not the best, is not a sobriety program in disguise. "Inconsistently consistent" is the best description. Last trip, in the early afternoon they were around regularly, but in the evening it was often a good 45 minutes between rounds.

They usually have a decent band in the one casino bar on the weekend evenings.

Yeah, the crowd tends to be older, but hey, it makes me feel young. Also, very few, if any, obnoxious wannabe-hipsters.

That's the good news. Here's the bad news ...

1. It's way out in the toolies! I see this is in the downtown section and it's definitely nowhere near downtown! The only other casino in walking distance is the Eastside Cannery, which is actually a fun place as well.

2. If you're in a room that overlooks the court, the show produces a loud roaring sound every couple of hours which will wake you up from a power nap.

3. I very seldom complain about smoke, but last year the smoke was getting to me. This was by the VP machines by the donut show and ice cream shop.

4. My brother got into an argument with a bartender about slow service this last trip. He finally escalated it to management. I was standing within earshot and the bartender was indeed a jerkus maximus about it! LOL, he got a free beer!

5. They took out the very good nickel VP machines!

6. They took out the casino coffee shop and replaced it with yet another TGIF.

I'll probably think of something else when I hit the post button.

 

I visited to watch the Christmas show, which was cheesily great. If I had an RV then I could see staying there or if I was a local. It was nice to visit but I wouldn't stay there.

 

Thanks all. I don't know why I thought it was downtown? Anyway, if it's that far away, forget it. I was just looking for some new places to stay next trip. We haven't stayed downtown before so I'm considering it.

 

Stayed at Sam's 2011

Hotel- Basic, everyday hotel room (boring and functional) it was clean and the maid staff was OK. The show in the atrium is OK but a little hokey.
The casino is FILTHY, FILTHY the bathrooms off of the floor are disgusting. One bar had a smell reminding me of the Plaza.
The staff is absolutely outstanding. I cannot praise the staff enough. 2 days there and you are like family, from pit bosses to the waitresses. They are possibily the sweetest, most down to earth, professional, decent people I have ever met in Veags.

 

* great VP including full pay deuces and 10/7 DB.
* American Casino guide coupon gets a free buffet with 200 points of play once a year.
* Sam's is one of the few places left with Silver Strike machines although the new coins are not made of real silver.
* Boyd card means points earned here can be used at Orleans, Gold Coast, etc. and vise versa.
* Young at Heart promos do point multiplication and cheap movies once a week for seniors.
* Easy and quick bus ride from downtown. Start across from the Gold Spike and take the HDX. The BHX is slower and the one you need late night/early morning to return downtown. But getting there takes about 16 minutes as do early trips back on the HDX Check bus schedules to see when it runs.
* There are also free shuttles from Sam's Town to the strip and to downtown at certain times of the day.
http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/referenceguide-transportationdetail.cfm?transportid=2&map=shuttlemap.cfm?showmap=SamsTown.jpg
As you can see there is a bit of service to the airport as well, but flights have to match the couple of shuttle times.
If I stay up there on Boulder at the end of a trip I am more likely to take the 202 from Eastside Cannery to Terribles, roll my luggage into the buffet and sit with coffee and food and my journal until I need to head to the airport, taking the 108 from there at Terribles. But I don't like hanging about in the airport. Terribles positions me so that there is a predictable time in riding to the airport.
* Any free nights earned at Sam's Town can be piggy backed with paid nights at Eastside Cannery where there is no resort fee, free room wifi, nice views in quiet rooms, and (for seniors) $10 off the rack rate making these nice rooms as low as $30 with no play. Then check in check out from or to Sam's is just a luggage roll.
* I better like staying at Eastside Cannery and playing at Sam's. The 202 ends up right in their parking lot and waits while the driver has a smoke. I like that at night time because it puts me at a stop that is safe and well lighted and uncrowded. I can watch for the bus from the casino circle at Eastside Cannery and have time to get to it long before it leaves for the strip or I can come back from the strip and be dropped off in a safe and worry free spot.
*bus rides to the strip are long, about 45 minutes, but there are plenty of things to do on Flamingo as well along the way. During the day, dropping at Terribles and walking to Tuscany, Ellis Island and then to the strip is nice. Also, no second bus is needed to go to the Gold Coast area for that casino, the Rio and the Palms.
Here are eateries I listed along Flamingo, accessible on the 202. Here are eaties I listed a year ago on a trip:

Weiner Schnitzel
Panda Express
Zoba's Mexican Grill
Chill n yogurt
REd Lobster
Buffet Asian
McDonald's classic
Olive Garden
Blueberry Hill Dine
Long John Silver
Raising Cane
jack in the Box
Mint india Bistro (Swenson)
Bucadi Beppo
Ghandi
Mortan Steak House
Bahama Breeze
Hamap of Japan
Fogo de Chao
McCormic and Shmick (across from Tuscany)
lawry's Prime Rib
Tuscany Cantina

Flamingo is fast becoming my new strip as the upscale renovations on the strip push me out of my $ comfort zone.

* I can envision a cash trip that starts downtown at the Gold Spike (WAX from airport and luggage roll) heads to Sam's Town (HDX from Gold Spike) heads to Eastside Cannery (luggage roll) Takes a night or two at Terribles (202) to see the newly renovated rooms and then uses their free shuttle ride to the airport after checkout and breakfast. Such a trip even with no comps should put average room prices at about $30 with anything above that depending on higher weekend rates. Cover the weekend with a comp somewhere and it makes a cheap trip.
* I've stayed at the Orleans a few days, rolled luggage down Arville to Flamingo (30 minutes- that day skip the treadmill) or taken the 104, and taken that 202 bus out to stay at Sam's Town. Stays near Flamingo or downtown can be easily followed with stays at Sam's because both the Boulder Highway buses and the 202 Flamingo buses are easy to ride with luggage, unlike stip buses which are more crowded and not as easily to negotiate with luggage.
* A large popcorn taken to the Sam's town movies can be refilled on the way out and taken to the room for a snack later.
* Best free show in Vegas and different every week. Toast of the Town at 2pm on Thursdays. Geared to an older audience and selecting the second string talent of Vegas, but they are often very good. Comedy, dance, song, a live band, puppets...you never know. Also free drawings for small prizes.
* Rooms were basic but checking for bedbugs was difficult because the mattresses are wrapped and rewrapped and then wrapped again. Forget looking at the seams.
* I don't eat this anymore but the McDonald's had a dollar menu and the quarter candy machines dispensed those wonderful Jelly Belly jelly beans
* Walmarts is just across the street as is a Bank of America drive up ATM. So retrieving room snacks and money is cheap.
* Fine, cheap morning poker tournaments that are not hard to win. However, the cash games afterwards seemed to have too tough competition and a dull and boring mix of surly locals with nothing much of interest to say. For cash poker Eastside Cannery has a 2-4 limit I like better.
* Nice place to start a bus journey to Sunset Station (BHX) or a visit to Henderson (HDX) I like the Sunset bus stop on Boulder as a place to switch from one bus to another for different itineraries after that.
* Itinerary might look like this on Thursday: Sleep at Gold Spike. Eat breakfast, perhaps the great blueberry pancakes but perhaps not on the new strict diet. Walk across the street and take the bus to Sam's for the morning poker tournament. After the tournament play Deuces or 10/7 DB earn free Sam's town buffet. See Toast of the Town show. Walk down to Eastside Cannery for 4 hours of poker which earns a free supper buffet, or take the bus to Tropicana and the 201 to the Orleans for Comedy at Big Al's and a bit of play there. Take that Orleans free shuttle to Bill's and walk over to play poker at Flamingo until early morning and then ride the Deuce back to downtown. Walk up Fremont to the El Cortez and check the poker game there. Then walk out the back door to the Gold Spike to sleep. Note that getting around Vegas with Sam's Town in the mix is not that hard on buses.

 

I won't even try to out-write Dewey, but Ms. Gecko and I have stayed at Sam's Town on numerous occasions and as recently as a couple weeks ago. Obviously, we like the place or we wouldn't keep going back. The fact that it's not on the Strip is more a plus than a minus for us, although their free shuttles provide easy access and to downtown, as do the RTC buses. As already mentioned, the rooms are surprisingly nice, as are their employees. We actually like TGIF's and (when drunk) have even enjoyed their fast food selections. We find the casino, rooms, and other areas clean and well-kept. Sure, someone can mess up a bathroom anywhere, but they're far from "filthy."

Buffet comps are easy to get and we thoroughly enjoyed seafood night (Friday's) during our last trip. Depending on offers, we certainly intend to stay there again.

 

Never stayed there but LOVE the casino. Wouldnt hesitate to stay there if the price is right. However that said it would be good idea to have wheels, so ya can go to other houses. But once again Dewey nails it with all the info.......

 

I am a fan... headed back in a few weeks. Another plus in my book is the pool area. It is heated and open year-round. It is also one of the few pools that stays open late.

 

Sam's town is on Boulder Highway and is within walking distance of the eastside cannery. It is a complete resort within itself, a number of people stay and play at Sam's their whole stay in vegas and never leave the place until they check out. I think that there is a walmart across the street from the place.

As others have mentioned, there are a lot of places to eat, a movie theater and a bowling alley downstairs.

It is kind of out of the way, not easy to get to with airport shuttles. Boyd does have a shuttle that takes you from Sam's town back to downtown and also to the strip (stops off at harrahs).

Sam's is a good out of the way place if you want to get away from the strip and downtown.

 

Dewey as pretty much said it all (and then some!).

I like playing there more than staying there. Rooms are OK. VP is great. Comps are good. Room rates are very cheap if you can't get comps. I really like Billy Bob's and usually hit it when on a gold card (RFB). Buffet is so-so. Mexican is solid. TGIF is...well TGIF.

Nice movie theater and old but well kept bowling alley.

Casino is a little hard to get around as it has been added too so much over the year. Actually it has the biggest casino floor in all of Vegas if you count both levels!

 

Are there any published standards (levels of play, etc.) for the Gold and Silver cards? Our friends (who usually get a Silver Card but occasionally Gold) don't really know and the employees I asked didn't really know either.

For those listening in, these Gold and Silver cards are not the usual player cards but essentially free passes to hit on all of the bars and restaurants on the property. Sams Town is the only place I've ever seen these.

Also, it seems like the only difference is that Billy Bob's is included on the Gold Card but not on the Silver Card. Are there any other things?

 

Downtown Boyd still uses the Gold Card, but not sure if they eliminated the Silver version. I think it might have disappeared with the start of the B Connected program. But Gold is alive and well.

When they had the Silver downtown, it excluded Redwood, 2nd St & if you remember the Pullman. It included all the buffets, 777, Cal coffee shop, Pasta Pirate and Tony Romo's.

It may still be around, I just haven't seen one.

 

I like that it is open 8 am to 10 pm, but this site says it is unheated. Expand on that a bit. When you go in January will it be heated?

http://www.lasvegasadvisor.com/showtable.cfm?id=24

 

So my friends and I are planning on taking the shuttle from the Fremont to Sam's next week. Will we be riding a long time?

 

I've stayed here a few times. It was okay, nothing fancy. The last time I stayed there I checked in was in 2009 around 11pm on a Thursday night, just need a room for 1 night. The girl upgraded our $25 basic King room to a suite. It was nice. Actually, very nice. The bartender down stairs was nice. I bought a few beers that were on some happy hour sale and my ex picked up a few mixed drinks that we took back to out suite.

I would stay there again for the price but it was pretty darn faraway from the strip. We were staying on the strip F-M so we just needed a late check in after work coming from San Diego.

 

We have taken it repeatedly, and while I have never timed it, I'd say 10-12 min and will vary a little with traffic. Be aware that it goes from Fremont to California--where it waits for 10-15 min, before heading down the Interstate/Boulder Hy to Sam's. Check the schedule on their web site, the bus usually is right on time.